Composite rail.



W. FERGUSON, JR. & A. W. BUEL.

COMPOSITE RAIL.

APPLIOATION FILED FIE-1L6, 1912.

Patented Mar. 17, 1914;

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W. FERGUSON, JR. & A. W. BUEL.

COMPOSITE RAIL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 6, 1912.

Patented Mar. 17, 1914.

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WALTON FERGUSON, JR., 015 STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT, AND ALBERT W. ".BUEL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

COMPOSITE BAIL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed February 6, 1912. Serial No. 675,815.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, V ALTON FERGUSON, Jr., a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Stamford, county of Fairfield, State of Connecticut, and ALBERT V. Bonn, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the borough of Manhattan, city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gomposite Rails, of which the following is a specification, accompanied by drawings.

This invention relates to improvements in composite rails having a supporting member and a separate wearing surface and the invention also relates to a continuous composite rail of this character in which the supporting members are laid end to end and the wearing surfaces supported thereby pref- 1 erably break joint with said supporting members, thus forming a continuous sup port for the wheels.

One object of the invention is to enable a very hard high carbon wearing head, of open hearth steel for instance, to be readily applied to and removed from a supporting member or stringer of mild steel, as soft structural steel, with the minimum disturbance of the road bed, which is an important factor to be considered particularly with reference to street railways.

Another object of the invention is to construct a supporting member or stringer adapted to support and hold the wearing head throughout its length and to this end the stringer is provided with a continuous lip integral therewith, extending the length of the stringer and engaging the base of the wearing head throughout its length.

()ther objects of the invention are to further reduce the cost of renewing the wearing surface by providing fastening devices for the wearing head which may readily be removed and replaced, and afford means for efficiently holding the wearing head upon the stringer, which holding means also resist lateral stresses.

The invention consists of the devices substantially as hereinafter fully described and claimed in this specification and shown in their preferred embodiments in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a transverse sectional view of a composite rail embodying the invention; Fig. 2 is a detail side elevation of the clamp; Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view on line 3-3 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. i is a detail sectional view on line 3 -3 of Fig. 1 looking in the opposite dlrectlon to the arrows; Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view of a modification of the invention; Fig. 6 is a top plan View of a street railway track laid with continuous composite rails in accordance with the invention; and Fig. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view on the line 77 of Fig. 6.

Referring to Fig. l of the drawings, A represents a supporting member or stringer, preferably of soft structural steel, having the base flanges B, the head flanges G, and the web portion D. The edge of one head flange C as shown is bent upwardly and inwardly upon itself to form a continuous securing lip E extending the length of the stringer.

The bearing head F forming the wearing surface is preferably of hard open hearth steel and in this instance is shown as a grooved street railway rail head having the base flanges G and H, one of which, as the flange G, being engaged underneath the securing lip E for its entire length and thereby held against vertical or lateral movement upon the stringer. Suitable removable clamps are provided at the other side of the wearing head F for clamping the head to the stringer, and in this instance each clamp comprises an angle member having the body portion J, and the bearing portion K, preferably connected by webs L. The body portion is preferably provided with a toe 0 adapted to bear against the web D, and the bearing port-ion K as shown is provided with the hook P adapted to engage the flange H on the wearing head. Suitable bolts Q connect the clamps to the web of the stringer. Suitable means are provided for preventing the bolt from turning as the nut R is rotated, and in this instance we have shown the bolt provided with a reduced flattened elliptical neck S passing through an elliptical hole T in the web D. In order to restrain longitudinal movement of the bolt when the nut and clamp are removed while changing wearing heads, we insert a split spring washer U over the neck S and between the web D and the shoulders V on the bolt, thus preventing the bolt from slipping backward when the nut is removed.

As the bolts Q, are tightened, it will be seen that the clamp has a bearing against Patented Mar. f7, 1914.

the web D at the toe O, and a bearing against the base flange H of the wearing head at the hook P. There is also a bearing at the under side of the head flange O of the stringer between the flange and the portion K of the clamp. The bearing head is thus forced transversely and held downwardly upon the stringer. Transverse adjustment of the wearing head to compensate for wear on the bearing head may be effected by inserting wedges or shims between the lip E and the base flange G of the head.

In the modification shown in Fig. 5, a flat wearing head IV is shown carried by the stringer instead of a grooved head. The clamps are like those shown in Fig. 1 except for a slightly modified form of hook X as illustrated. The bolts Y are shown provided with elliptical necks or shoulders Z to prevent them from turning and in both forms of the invention any suitable form of nut lock may be used as a washer at having the portion Z) adapted to be bent over the nut.

The relation of the street paving, as the blocks a, is shown in connection with the composite rail structures, and obviously it is only necessary to remove the pavement on one side of the rail for a suflicient depth at the clamps to expose the nuts R and enable the clamps to be loosened sufliciently to release the wearing head.

In laying the track, the stringers A are laid end to end and supported on the usual ties or yokes (Z, as illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7, in which the street paving has been omitted for clearness of illustration. The meeting ends of the stringers may be con nected, if desired, by the fish plates 6. The wearing heads F preferably break joint with the stringers as shown in Figs. 6 and 7, so that a continuous composite rail is formed having a hard head or wearing surface and a softer supporting member or stringer.

In this composite rail the integral securing lip of the stringer will always be placed on the side opposite to that on which the wheel flanges are provided. In ordinary railroad practice, the wheel flanges are on the inside and the integral securing lips of the stringers will be on the outside. As all of the lateral forces, tending to spread or overturn the rails are due to the pressure of the wheel flanges on the inside of the rail head, they are directly resisted by the integral securing lip of the stringer on the outside. Thus the clamping devices with their bolts have little or no work to do, except to hold the rail or wearing surface under the lip and all the clamps, except two or three for each rail length, could be removed without putting the track out of commission or causing any danger. In this invention it will be seen that the bolts and separate fastening devices have no direct stresses or strains to resist. V y

We claim and desire to obtain by Letters Patent the following: i

A composite rail comprising a stringer having head and base flanges, the edge of one head flange being bent upwardlyand then inwardly substantially parallel to the head of the stringer to form a securing lip, a wearing head supported by the stringer and having base flanges, one of which is adapted to be wedged underneath said inturned lip for a portion of the width of the'lip, leaving a clearance between the edge of the flange and the base of the lip, adapted to receive a shim or filler, thereby permitting transverse adjustment of the wearing head to and from the base of the lip to take up wear and keep the flange of the wearing head tight under the lip.

In testimony whereof we have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing' witnesses.

l/VALTON FERGUSON, JR. ALBERT W. BUEL. Witnesses:

HERBERT Gr. OGDEN, HENRY SHELDON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, lay-addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

